Kuldeep lies in an air-fluid bed at the intensive care unit of AIIMS and has been put on a ventilator even as his anxious family members wait outside praying.

His wife, eight-months pregnant, is at home with fingers crossed as doctors have advised her not to move much and avoid stress.

"Doctors have told us that he has lost one eye. They have operated upon his second eye, but say chances of success are only 20 per cent," says Kuldeep's septuagenarian mother Ram Kali, waiting outside the ICU.

But his sister Anuradha Chowdhary dreads visiting him.

"I am scared. I don't know whether I'll be able to see him in such a condition. They (doctors) have not yet allowed me in," Anuradha said.

Kuldeep's family knows he may not be able to drive again although the Delhi government announced that they will accommodate him.

Kuldeep is on a contract job with the Delhi Transport Corporation.

"I thank God, he is alive. But we all shared his dreams, his visions as a would-be parent. But the wounds will all redefine them now," Kuldeep's uncle Yashpal Tanwar said. His parents feel proud of Kuldeep's heroic act that has been appreciated by the authorities and common people alike.

The Delhi government announced a reward of Rs 2 lakh for Kuldeep.

The police said the alertness and courage of Kuldeep and his conductor Budh Raj had saved at least eight to 10 lives.